Revenge of a Wicked Witch
by Guardian of the Flames
Summary: The Beldam wants revenge. She would die because of Coraline. But, as she accepts she'll never get the chance to strike back, she thinks of an idea... And her idea succeeds. But, the preparations of her plan leave her thinking. It is not Coraline who deserves her wraith, but the mother. The wretched mother. And what better way to get even than to take away what she cared most for?


Why. Why hadn't she succeeded? That was all the other mother wanted to know. She had succeeded thrice before, so why had she failed this time? How could she have lost to a little girl? She had constructed a beautiful, intricate web for the child to trap herself in, and yet... it didn't work. The problem wasn't with the web. In fact, it was the best one yet. The Other Mother always had a knack for decorating but she outdid herself every time. It couldn't have been because her puppets hadn't been accurate enough. If anything, they were too accurate, as the Other Father had tried to defy her will. The Other Mother fixed that, but even the desire to rebel had never occured before... And yet, her puppets were still not accurate enough for her darling little Coraline. Eventually, the Other Mother accepted the truth. Coraline's life simply hadn't been as bad as the other children's had been. They let her sew the buttons because of their desperation. Coraline didn't have a perfect life, either, but apparently it was good enough for her to long for it. All because she was scared of a pair of mere buttons. That, or Coraline was an intelligent child. And she was. Not even then did the Other Mother disagree with that fact. She had simply been outsmarted. Now, she would stay there, in her web, until death finally showed her mercy...

But that would not do. Oh, no. She had to pay back her precious daughter in full for what she did. But, how was she going to do it? She had no key. What little magic she had would kill her if she tried to conjure a portal. Even without using it, she still felt that dreadful sensation. Dying. And yet, it was this sensation of drifting away that led the Other Mother to her resolution. She might as well have checked. After all, she was all but dead anyway. The Other Mother, with great effort, stood up. She walked with purpose to what used to be a replica of Coraline's bedroom. Once there, she opened up two drawers in a chest. Here she kept the clothing of the other three children. As she expected, the first two drawers were empty. But the third drawer held a dress. It was badly decomposed, but it was there. The Other Mother searched in it's pockets. It was here whether or not her plan worked would be decided. To her astonishment, a pocket contained a black key with four holes. She hurried to what used to be the grounds. One more fluke. One more fluke and she would succeed. After reaching a spot, she dug with her sharp, crimson nails. She kept digging away until...

Yes, there it was. Her plan would now succeed.

A minute later, the Other Mother took out the key from her apron pocket and unlocked the door. The nails of her left hand drummed with passage was murky, but she didn't care. It would do.

Coraline sat at the kitchen table. Her mother had gone out with a friend, so her father was making dinner for the two of them. Although she hated her father's cooking, Coraline would eat whatever weird concoction her father created. As long as it wasn't poisoned, of course. Her time in the other world made her realize something; even though her parents sometimes seemed to see how far they could push her patience, it wasn't on purpose. They loved her and tried their best, and she couldn't really ask them to do more. Oh, look. Dinner was done.

"Sorry for the wait, Coraline. It was hard cutting the chicken without that huge knife, but I did it." Coraline felt a pang of guilt. The truth was she had her mother's butcher's knife... or was it carving knife? Anyway, she always slept with the blade under the sleeve of her pajamas. It made her feel save from button eyed witches who tried to sew their big black buttons over your eyes. Yes, it was silly, but Coraline had nightmares for some time after she had escaped the other world. Almost a year had passed. It was midsummer of the next year then. Thankfully, the nightmares were leaving her. This is the last time, she thought. After tonight, I'll put it back... after I think of an excuse of course, anyway. At any rate, it was time for her to chow down.

While she had been contemplating, Coraline's father had put a chicken leg, gravy, corn on the cob, and a roll on Coraline's plate. To her surprise, her father hadn't tampered with the chicken. "I'm exhausted. Sorry, Coraline. No elaborate meals today."

"It's fine, Dad," Coraline said, careful to make sure she didn't sound excited.

"Well, dig in!" And with that both Coraline and her father shoveled food down their throats. Coraline's mother always complained how they ate like they would never eat again. They paid her no heed. As such, it fell on Mother to keep the conversations going, and when she was gone, they had nothing to say. Not that it mattered. Coraline's father always felt comfortable being silent in her presence, and vice versa. Soon, dinner was finished and Coraline was off to bed. "Night, Dad."

"Goodnight, Coraline."

Coraline trudged up the stairs and into her bedroom. She pulled a knife from between two mattresses and tucked it under her sleeve. Now she could sleep peacefully. And then she'd put the knife back. When she thought of a way that wouldn't make her look suspicious, of course.

"Coraline... Rise and shine, my sweet child." Was that her mother's voice calling her? Through her blurred vision, she saw her mother's silhouette. But, why would she wake her now? It was the middle of the night. She rubbed her eyes. When she looked again, she tried to sit up... but she couldn't. No, it couldn't be! But, it was. The Other Mother stared at Coraline, with her skin as pale as paper, and black buttons somehow narrowing. Coraline looked down. The Other Mother had tied her down with several ropes under the mattress. The mattress! Maybe, if she played along, she could somehow escape. "Oh. Hello, again. I knew you'd be back."

"Did you, now?"

"Oh, yes. Whenever I have nightmares, you _always _come back. And you always try to convince me you're real but you never are. Because you're nothing but a figment of my imagination. I locked you in your web and I got rid of your hand, too. You're never coming back, but you're still going to be with me forever, unfortunately. Nightmares never really leave if their scary enough. So, what is it this time? Are you going to try to sew your buttons on my eyes and disappear every time the needle comes down? Or is it killing me? My family? The cat?"

The Beldam smiled wickedly. Coraline was a good actress, but she was an actress all the same. She never could have faked that look of horror and surprise when she opened her eyes. "Coraline, darling, why would you ever try to trick your mother?"

Oh, no. She wasn't fooled. "I... I don't know what you're talking about. You're nothing but a nightmare." As she said this Coraline, surreptitiously searched for the knife between the mattresses of her bed.

The Beldam walked over to the door and turned the light switch on. She waited for Coraline's eyes to adjust. Then she pretended to notice for the first time Coraline was searching for something. She pulled the butcher's knife from her apron pocket. "Is this what you're looking for?" She stood very still to witness Coraline's reaction. The terror on her face was extremely satisfying. The Other Mother wished she could have relished in Coraline's fear, but a las, she could not. She was on a time schedule. By dawn, she would have turned to dust.

She walked to the foot of Coraline's bed and rested her arms on the footboard. "For a long time I thought about how much I hated you. How much I hated you for leaving me. My anger was all I knew," she confessed. "And then all I thought was 'Why? Why didn't I succeed? Why didn't I fool you? Why am I going to die? Why?' "

The Other Mother let out a deep sigh. She suddenly seemed very calm.

"But, eventually, I thought clearly. My dear Coraline, it wasn't me being unconvincing or you being skeptical. It was your mother. Your witch of a mother. _She _convinced you to run away from me. Saying that she loved you even th ough she never payed you any attention. And you believed it! She's worse than I am!" The Beldam's voice was rising into a scream, but she restrained herself.

"And so... I realized it wasn't you, my precious daughter, that I needed to settle my tab with, but your mother. And what better way to do so than take away what she held dear?" The Other Mother noticed Coraline's rising panic. "Now, dear, you might as well save your breath. I already killed your father, you see. And when I'm finished with you, your mother will be all alone, just like I was. And then, who knows? There'll be nothing left of any of us. But, I am getting ahead of myself. Your mind may try to convince you this is all a nightmare, give you comfort as you die. I'm afraid I'll have to put that theory to rest. I want you to be sure you'll never see the light of day again."

So, this was it, then. Coraline would die specifically to incapacitate her mother, and her father already died for the same purpose. She knew this vile creature was wicked, and now, she had provoked the most wicked side of all. She promised herself one thing, however. She would not scream. She would not shout. She would not give this demon such satisfaction. She would die as herself? And isn't that what everyone wants in the end? Coraline could not contemplate this, for the Other Mother had begun to speak.

"I was dying when I thought of a way to reach you, my daughter. I was so close to death that if I used any of my magic, I would kill myself from doing so. But, on a stroke of luck, I found a key. A key that just happened to fit into the little door. I found it in the pocket of one of my children's dresses. She was the one before you came to me. Anyway, that wouldn't do on it's own. I needed magic to disperse the bricks and create the portal between this world and the other. So, I went to the grounds and I dug. The nails on my left hand were sharp , because my right hand was severed off and it's at the bottom of a well now, thanks to you! But, I guess it makes no difference, because I dug and dug until I found the body of my mother. Remember when I said I put her in her grave and I put her back when she tried to get out? Well, she was dead, but her corpse remained. So, I ate it. And it was enough to give me the magic necessary to waltz into your house, take care of your father, and get upstairs to you. And now, here we are!"

Coraline said nothing. She sealed her lips very tightly. This creature could kill her, but it could not take her proud. She would show no fear. She would show nothing at all, in fact.

"You don't believe me? I could show you your father's new eyes, but, we're out of time it seems." The Other Mother said this as she looked at the sinking moon. It was almost out of sight.

"On the other hand, I'm so glad you hid this knife for me. Without it, I wouldn't be able to surprise, and I couldn't give you the surprise I'm about to." Coraline found it difficult to maintain an emotionless mask when the Beldam said this and described other atrocities with such joy, but she managed.

The Other Mother crossed over to the right side of Coraline's bed. She lifted the large butcher's knife over Coraline's right arm. _You witch, _Coraline thought. _I won't cry out.__  
_

And then the jagged blade jabbed itself into Coraline's arm. Coraline bit back a cry. If she could endure this, she would accomplish her final task. The Beldam frowned at this. She took the knife out of Coraline's body and raised it again. Then she plunged it back into Coraline's arm again with as much as force as possible, but, the only reaction was a muffled groan. _This pain... _Stab. _Is nothing... __This pain. _STAB. _Will not break me... _The Beldam then descended into a frenzy. She stabbed ferociously, uncontrolled, wherever she could. She **would **hear Coraline scream. **_This pain..._ Stab! _Cannot change me... This pain_ ..._ Stab!_ _even though it hurts, will not be the end of me. This pain...! STAB! STAB! STAB! WILL NEVER BREAK ME!_** With a deafening roar, the Beldam drew back. If Coraline wouldn't scream for her, she would never make a noise again! The knife plunged into Coraline. That was the last stab. The last stab that would count. Coraline was dead. **  
**

The Other Mother stumbled backwards. She was breathing heavily. She had done it. Gotten her revenge. At last. But, even a witch with as much magic and willpower such as her could not defeat fate. With her revenge taken, she accepted that fact. She did not fight as her left hand dropped the knife. The stump of what used to be her right hand did nothing. She collapsed. When the mother returned, there would be no evidence of her crime... Or would there? The mother may have known of her time in the snow globe... or she may not remember at all. The Other Mother did not have time to wonder because she, The Beldam, well established beast, was already dead.

In the morning Coraline's mother returned home. She thanked her friend before starting for the steps. Coraline would be starting school soon and she had brought supplies right after finishing her gardening catalog. Well, her and and her husband's. She had promised to return home before midnight, but, well, her single friends said she needed a break and she didn't resist. She was only a little tipsy when she realized she needed to stop, but, even then, she still decided to crash at her friend's place. She was almost certain it was because she was tired and not because she was drunk and she'd made an excuse. Regardless, she was home then, and she would explain once inside.

She unlocked the door.

Inside, she was greeted by her husband. The black buttons and blood seeping from them stared at her.

Very creepy. Coraline must have thought she was funny, and so did her husband, probably, but that was going to far. Unquestionably. She walked over and tried to peel them off... Only when she tried to pull the buttons off... they didn't leave her husband's sockets. They weren't glued on at all. She tugged once, slightly. The big black buttons did not come off.

Coraline's mother could barely contain her shriek as she realized that it was not a sinister joke. Someone had mutilated her husband. Jabbed a needle into his eyes._  
_

She did not stay there to think of further scenarios. She knew he wouldn't want her to. "Coraline! Coraline, where are you?!" Coraline's mother shrilled this as she ran. She was running so fast she was practically tripping over the stairs.

In little time, yet an eternity too long, Coraline's mother reached her child's bedroom. She flung open the door.

Coraline was on top of her mattress. She laid there perfectly still. There were no covers over her. There was nothing at all. Except red. Coraline's mother saw red. She saw red spewing out of crevasses all over Coraline's body. From her palms, her arms, her stomach... and... somewhere else

There was a crevasse on her neck. She wanted to cradle her child, but what would that do? She was already dead. If she did, all she would due would widen the crevasse on Coraline's neck into a gap, like an open mouth.

Coraline's mother vomited. She vomited more than once. She vomited several times. Eventually, she thought she would die from all the fluids she regurgitated. She hoped it was so. _Let me die,_ she thought. _Let me die so I can be with my family again... _Darkness wrapped around her, but she didn't fight it. She welcomed it. All it was doing was helping her. Whether or not the darkness wanted to was irrelevant. Because it had helped her as she faded away... and for that, she was thankful it had given her peace.

**...**

**Wow. I don't usually cringe around violence, but then I don't usually have blood and guts everywhere in my work. Not like this. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, or rather, hated this story as much as I did. It was awful, but what can I say? I have to keep my options open... But I don't think I have the strength to do horror or tragedy. Oh, well. Thanks for your time.**


End file.
